Castoriadis versus Michels: A reflection on the iron law of oligarchy

Throughout his life, Cornelius Castoriadis displayed an unwavering commitment to democracy. He militated for it and developed concepts to elucidate its significance for human freedom. Yet are the concepts Castoriadis developed enough to explain the depth of his aforementioned commitment? In this essay, I try to imagine how Castoriadis would have addressed Roberto Michels's iron law of oligarchy' thesis. I find that Castoriadis's concepts can help us question the normative value Michels assigned to oligarchy, but they fail to explain how he could have remained so committed to democracy when oligarchy seems ineluctable. Such a commitment, I argue, ultimately rests on an existential decision, the roots of which cannot be rationally explained.